Допринос проучавању стреличарства – os acromiale

Поремећај у центрима осификације скапуле назива се оs acromiale (os acromiale accesorium; acromion bipartite). Њега је први пут описао Jean Cruveilher 1843. године. Ова појава се манифестује у виду несрас- лих и одвојених епифиза акромиона, до којих долази услед поремећаја између самих центара осификације. Наиме, на акромиону постоје чети- ри осификациона центра и оs acromiale се може појавити између било која два центра. У презентацији ће бити представљена сама анатомска варијација оs acromiale. Биће речи о њеним варијантама, терминологији у литератури, и учесталости и дистрибуцији саме појаве. Посебна пажња биће пос- већена етиологији ове анатомске варијације. Наиме, етиологија ове појаве и даље остаје нејасна. Тренутно постоје три хипотезе – прва, оs acromiale је узрокована механичким стресом који трпи акромион током периода раста, друга – на њен развој утичу генетски фактори, и трећа – појава оs acromiale је узрокована генетским факторима, али и факторима из спољашње средине, односно генетском предиспозицијом која се може манифестовати када су присутни специ- фични типови механичког стреса, посебно током адолесцентне фазе. У корист прве хипотезе, забележена је велика учесталост оs acromiale у две скелетне серије енглеских стреличара из 15. (са ратишта Северни Јоркшир код Тоутона, Енглеска), и 16. (из Мери Роуз) века. Сматра се да је узрок ове аномалије пре свега у вези са напорним вежбама приликом употребе оружја, нарочито лука и стрела (посебно дугог лука!), односно неким врстама механичког стреса и поновљајућих траума које поједина занимања изазивају, и тиме спречавају фузију акромиона. У презента- цији ће бити представљене две индивидуе, са локалитета Ромулијана и из Манастира Ресаве (Манасије), које су користиле лук и стреле, и које имају оs acromiale управо на левој страни тела

Continuous mitochondrial diversity of Danube sturgeon species over millennia: insights from ancient DNA

Sturgeons, an iconic group of large fishes inhabiting marine and freshwater ecosystems, have historically had significant economic and cultural value, particularly prized for their meat and roe (caviar). Furthermore, sturgeons play a vital ecological role as mesopredators of prey fish and invertebrates. In the Danube basin, the European (Acipenser sturio) and fringebarbel or ship sturgeon (Acipenser nudiventris) are locally extinct, while beluga (Huso huso), Russian (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii), stellate (Acipenser stellatus) and sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus) sturgeon have significantly declined since the nineteenth century owing to overfishing, habitat loss and pollution. Archaeological evidence suggests that sturgeon exploitation along the Danube began as early as 11.6 thousand years before the present. This study explores the genetic landscape of Danube sturgeons over the past approximately 10 000 years using ancient DNA (aDNA) from archaeological specimens. Despite challenges posed by limited sample size, phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial genomes and the D-loop reveal high genetic diversity within beluga, Russian and ship sturgeon populations. In addition, shared haplotypes between modern and historical specimens of both beluga and Russian sturgeons suggest genetic continuity within each species over time. This study provides, to our knowledge, the first high-coverage sequencing of ancient sturgeon mitogenomes establishing the foundation for future aDNA research. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Shifting seas: understanding deep-time human impacts on marine ecosystems’

Систематска истраживања римског утврђења Герулата у селу Мироч током 2024. године

Систематска археолошка истраживања римског утврђења Герулата у селу Мироч, започета још 2021. године, настављена су и током 2024. године. Ископавања је током месеца јула спровео Археолошки институт у Београду, уз финансијску подршку Министарства културе и информисања и Општине Мајданпек. Након дефинисања делова бедема на северној, западној и источној страни, заједно са кулама које фланкирају капије током претходних кампања, ове сезоне се приступило ископавањима југоисточне угаоне куле и дела бедема на југу. Циљ истраживања био је да се установе димензије утврђења у правцу север– југ

Absolute dating of Bronze Age urn burials in the central Balkans: Cemeteries of copper-producing societies in eastern Serbia

Ever since the first discovery of urn burials in eastern Serbia during the 1980s, their dating has been uncertain and based on distant analogies and typological parallels. In this paper, we present radiocarbon dates from five urn cemeteries and three associated settlement sites, showing that the initial dating (Late Bronze Age; 14th–11th BCE) is highly questionable. Instead, radiocarbon dating and modeling presented here connect the urn cemeteries—characterized by a specific grave architecture and associated with settlements that display evidence of copper production—to a period between the 20th and 16th centuries BC. The fact that many of our dates come from cremated bones requires a discussion with regard to the circumstances of carbon exchange during cremation. The absolute dates thus far available for most urn cemeteries from the neighboring regions of the Balkans are all markedly younger (15th–11th century BC) than the data presented here and fall in the frame of the overall expansion of cremation in Europe during the Urnfield period. The new absolute dates from eastern Serbia provide a possibility to change our understanding of the Bronze Age dynamics of the 2nd millennium in the broader area of southeastern Europe and indicate a much earlier acceptance of cremation among certain groups than previously thought

Тројанов град – нова сазнања на основу LiDAR снимања

Тројанов град представља археолошки локалитет градинског типа, који се налази на источном ободу планине Цер. Сам положај утврђења обезбеђује контролу над ширим простором у који спадају Поцерина, источни делови Јадра и југоисточни делови Мачве, али се за време „јасних“ дана поглед са овог утврђења пружа и до Београда, Авале и Фрушке Горе. Локалитет је често помињан у описима првих хроничара и путописаца, претежно као римски и српски утврђени град, док су археолошка истраживања, спроведена у више наврата, потврдила постојање културног слоја из прелазног периода из бронзаног у гвоздено доба (Ha A), али и негирала његов средњовековни карактер. И поред великог броја писаних извора као и изведених археолошких истраживања, Тројанов град никада није могао у целости да се сагледа услед густе шумске вегетације. Развој модерних и иновативних беспилотних летелица и нових рачунарских софтвера, омогућио је једноставнију и све чешће заступљену примену метода даљинске детекције у обради, анализи и документовању покретног и непокретног археолошког материјала. Једна од поменутих техника, а која има велику примену у анализи археолошких локалитета упрвао јесте LiDAR метода (Light Detection and Ranging). Применом различитих параметара у склопу више поновљених снимака у каснијој анализи, могу се добити резултати који нису видљиви у оквиру једног снимка. Сходно томе, у оквиру овог излагања биће приказан методолошки приступ у оквиру процеса снимања, као и резултати који јасно показују положај старих сонди, границе унутрашњег и спољашњег платоа, границе бедема, одбрамбеног рова и римске куле, чиме се долази до јасније слике о Тројановом граду

Fresh light on Balkan prehistory: highlights from Svinjarička Čuka (Serbia)

Searching for the Neolithic along the Vardar-Morava River corridor revealed several new sites in a previously underexplored region. Multidisciplinary investigations at Svinjarič ka Cuka identified Neolithic and Bronze Age occupation. Highlights presented here demonstrate the potential of this new key site for enriching our understanding of the prehistory of the Balkans

Hunting and fishing implements from the Bronze Age site of Popov Salaš (northern Serbia)

Hunting and fishing had relatively small role in the subsistence of the Bronze Age communities in the southern Carpathian basin; however, they were not entirely abandoned. The evidence is rather scarce, especially for the sites excavated in the mid-20th century, when faunal remains were only selectively collected and the soil was not sieved. Some indirect evidence may be obtained from the hunting and fishing gear. In particular, toggle harpoons produced from red deer antler were rather common and widespread in the Late Eneolithic and the Bronze Age in the southern Carpathian basin, although certain differences in technology and morphology may be noted. In this paper will be presented hunting and fishing implements from the Bronze age Vatin culture site of Popov Salaš – Kać. The site is situated in southern Bačka region, in vicinity of Novi Sad, in Vojvodina, northern Serbia. The site was near the modern course of the Danube river, and presumably surrounded by the marshy areas in prehistoric times. The excavations carried out in 1960’s yielded certain amount of osseous tools, including several well-preserved toggle harpoons. These items were made from red deer antler, carefully crafted, and presumably used for fishing. In addition, one possible arrow head was found, also made from red deer antler. In this paper will be discussed technological and typological traits of these objects, as well as their possible mode of use

Late Bronze and Early Iron Age metal depositions in northeastern Serbia – archaeometallurgical perspective

In this paper, we present and discuss the results of archaeometallurgical analyses (ED XRF and Lead Isotope Analysis) on metal objects from several hoards from northeastern Serbia dating to different periods, including Topolnica and Urovica (BA D–Ha A1), Bradarac, Bradarac Rukumija and Stari Kostolac- Mali Grad (Ha A1), Alun, Brza Palanka, Leskovo and Vojilovo (Ha A2–Ha B1) and Stari Kostolac-Leštar and Živica (Ha C1). The area along the Danube River Gorge stands out as one of the very few European microregions with a continuity of metal deposition activities throughout the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages (13th–8th centuries BC). The deposition of metal hoards additionally highlights the unique character of this landscape and the importance of the Danube Gorge in the prehistoric communication networks. From a diachronic perspective, our analyses revealed different alloy mixtures and provided hints regarding the provenance of copper raw material used for the casting. Currently, there are no data that support the use of nearby abundant local copper deposits in northeastern Serbia during this period

Social transformations of liminal areas in the Late Neolithic: A multidisciplinary approach to the site of Gradište (Serbia)

The site of Gradište, located near the town of Kikinda, in the Serbian part of the Banat region, has been the subject of multidisciplinary archaeological research since 2014, focusing on the formation and transformation of human societies between the Neolithic and the Late Bronze Age, human – landscape interactions, local area networks, communications, and trade and exchange in a liminal area constantly washed by inɦuences of major traditions originating both in the Balkans and in the Carpathian Basin. The site was occupied between the late 6th and the 1st millennium BC and encompasses a large area of diverse traces of human activities, illustrating its varying use through time. In our efforts to elucidate the origins, development and transformations of the local Late Neolithic population, we use a multidisciplinary approach to the material culture remains, Bayesian chronological dating of events, and scientific analysis of period proxy data. The approached showed significant alterations to material culture and societal organisation through time, from the settlement organisation and architecture building to pottery making and firing, to subsistence adaptation to local environment

Outdoor Cooking Spaces in the Late Neolithic Vinča Settlements

Food practices shape both private and communal spaces, fostering social bonds within households and the community. Indoor and outdoor activity areas are often viewed as distinct: the former are managed by individual households, while the latter are open and accessible to a broader community. Activities confined within dwellings are usually spatially structured, with tasks assigned to specific locations. In contrast, open areas are fluid, multitasking arenas, where identifying the community's involvement is a challenging task. This paper addresses the difficulties encountered in outdoor food-related practices using selected examples from Vinča culture sites (c. 5400-4650/4550 cal BC) in Serbia. Vinča culture settlements were characterized by dense occupation and long-lasting habitation. The houses had 1-3 rooms, some also the second storey, and 1-4 ovens, which were central features in the ‘kitchen’, surrounded by vessels, querns, and mortars. In contrast, outdoor thermal structures were stand-alone features, rarely accompanied by cooking utensils. However, ashy deposits associated with them are rich in plant remains – from fuel, food and waste. The diversity of thermal structures – ovens, hearths, and fire pits – along with their spatial distribution, plant contents, and history of use, provide a fruitful ground for discussing outdoor food-related practices. In at least one instance, they point to collective open-air activities entailing food preparation and consumption